Study Debunks Gingko Biloba Myth
December 31st 2009 20:21
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From: NBC
For years gingko biloba has been touted as an herbal supplement that can maintain and improve memory and brain function as we age, but according to a new study by University of Virginia researchers, the supplement has no effect at all.
UVA was among several universities that evaluated the cognitive function of over 3,000 adults, ages 72 to 96. From 2000 to 2008, half the participants took a placebo, the other half took ginkgo biloba extract twice a day.
"What we can say is that we find no evidence that ginkgo, over this long period of time, made a difference in whether someone's slow change in memory function, as a function of normal aging, was affected at all by the medication," said the UVA School of Medicine's Steven T. Dekosky.
Researchers say their study is the first long-term and consistent look at just how effective the popular herb is.
The study is featured in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association.
Reported by Stacia Harris
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